An ominous stop in the Outback tops the DVD releases for the week of Jan. 9.
“The Royal Hotel”: Two backpackers (Julia Garner and Jessica Henwick) pick up a gig at a dive bar in an Australian mining town, and experience harrowing gendered violence in the sophomore feature from director Kitty Green (“The Assistant”).
“The simple, sturdy plot of ‘The Royal Hotel’ demands something other than minimalism, but Green’s sophomore triumph is no less precise than ‘The Assistant’ in its staging, editing and perceptiveness about what women put up with most every day of their lives,” writes Chicago Tribune critic Michael Phillips in his review. “Garner and Henwick are doing the kind of acting that looks easy but isn’t. It’s a film of flickering doubts and accumulating, justifiable paranoia.”
Also new on DVD
“Far Haven”: Western in which a man must stand up to the brigands who attack his father-in-law and are terrorizing the titular town.
“The Highest of Stakes”: Documentary film examining the blockchain technology that’s central to cryptocurrencies.
“The Mental State”: A Kentucky high school student becomes fixated on a conspiracy following an incident with a town shooter in this thriller.
“They Turned Us Into Killers”: Horror flick about a woman out for vengeance after her best friend dies by suicide following an assault by her boyfriend.
“Varsity Blues”: The 1999 cult classic starring James Van Der Beek as a high school quarterback and Jon Voight as the team’s coach is available on 4K Ultra HD for the first time to mark the film’s 25th anniversary.
“Blood Simple”: The Coen brothers’ debut feature, a Texas-set noir that also marks Frances McDormand’s first on-screen role, gets a 4K UHD upgrade from Criterion Collection.
Digital HD
“Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One”: DC Comics animated film in which the titular heroes are called together when the Anti-Monitor supervillain threatens the multiverse.
“The Windigo”: An ancient Native American demon is accidentally unleashed by a teen trying to protect his family from drug dealers.
